Download a PDF of the new ARTBOOK | D.A.P. Fall 2017 catalog, featuring more than 600 forthcoming books on art, architecture, photography, design, theory and more!

&nbsp

&nbsp

RORHOF

Nicoló Degiorgis: Hidden Islam

Islamic Makeshift Places of Worship in North East Italy, 2009-2013

Edited by Nicoló Degiorgis, Martin Parr. Introduction by Martin Parr.

In Italy the right to worship without discrimination is enshrined in the constitution. There are 1.35 million Muslims in Italy and yet, officially, only eight mosques in the whole country. Consequently, the Muslim population has been relegated to a huge number of makeshift places of worship; garages, shops, warehouses and old factories have become host to prayer. Hidden Islam offers a peek inside Italy's invisible Islam. Photographer Nicolò Degiorgis explores the various temporary mosques in Northeast Italy, where anti-Islamic campaigns and the shortage of worship spaces are particularly acute. Seemingly dull black-and-white images of the diverse building exteriors are printed on folded pages, but upon opening the gatefold, full-color scenes inside these mosques are revealed. The images are arranged by building type (shop, warehouse, apartment).

Featured image is a spread reproduced from Nicoló Degiorgis: Hidden Islam.

KYRA SUTTON | DATE 10/9/2015

While the media is abuzz with talk of the large Muslim populations in France, Germany, Holland and England, Islam and Italy are terms not often heard in tandem. Italy is, in fact, home to 1.5 million practicing Muslims—a figure that has grown rapidly within the last 10 to 15 years with new waves of immigration from countries such as Albania, Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia and Pakistan, among others. The country, however, contains a mere eight mosques on paper, only one of which holds official state recognition. Though freedom of religious practice without discrimination is enshrined within the Italian constitution, Islam is the second-most widely practiced religion in the country behind Catholicism and it has yet to receive formal recognition from the state. In 2008, a bill was introduced to block the construction of mosques in much of the country, meaning the millions of Muslims in Italy have had to find other spaces in which to gather and pray. continue to blog

Nicoló Degiorgis: Hidden IslamIslamic Makeshift Places of Worship in North East Italy, 2009-2013

Published by Rorhof.Edited by Nicoló Degiorgis, Martin Parr. Introduction by Martin Parr.

In Italy the right to worship without discrimination is enshrined in the constitution. There are 1.35 million Muslims in Italy and yet, officially, only eight mosques in the whole country. Consequently, the Muslim population has been relegated to a huge number of makeshift places of worship; garages, shops, warehouses and old factories have become host to prayer. Hidden Islam offers a peek inside Italy's invisible Islam. Photographer Nicolò Degiorgis explores the various temporary mosques in Northeast Italy, where anti-Islamic campaigns and the shortage of worship spaces are particularly acute. Seemingly dull black-and-white images of the diverse building exteriors are printed on folded pages, but upon opening the gatefold, full-color scenes inside these mosques are revealed. The images are arranged by building type (shop, warehouse, apartment).